One hundred fifty-seven days. That’s a long summer for Caps fans. And Saturday night at 7:09 P.M. Eastern Time when six ounces of vulcanized rubber tumbled toward the ice sheet it was finally over.

“The atmosphere was great,” Alex Ovechkin told reporters after the game. “The fans push us forward all the time. It’s nice to play at home, especially the first game. I know everybody was missing hockey here so it’s nice to come back.”

The trademarks of Caps hockey were all there last night: Sam Wolk pursed his lips to his horn and let lout three loud blasts at the drop of the puck; Wes Johnson bellowed out the name of Alexander Semin (heavy on the “r”) after Washington lit the lamp for the first time this season on Sasha’s tally; William Stilwell, better known as the Goat, let out a thunderous roar of “Let’s Go Caps!” as he stomped the metal beneath his feet when shown on the big screen in the second period.

There have been pre-season games (eight of them to be exact) and practices — a convention too. But nothing lives up to games that actually matter — or maybe do not matter depending on how you look at it. And Caps fans were ready. 18,506 of them packed Verizon Center, good for a sellout crowd at 100.6 percent of capacity, a number that makes sense if you don’t think about it.

“I’m super excited that they’re back,” Caps fan Jenn McAdoo said. “I felt last year they were trying to stay angry. Let’s just hope this year they stay in the playoffs.”

The off-season, which like all recent ones has begun much too early for the Caps’ liking, was one of change. Former playoff stud and ceiling enthusiast Semyon Varlamov was shipped to Denver, though he probably should do some stretching before hitting the slopes in Colorado. Eric Fehr, too, now plays for another team. Same goes for Matt Bradley, Boyd Gordon, Jason Arnott, Scott Hannan, and Marco Sturm (who was in D.C. for about half has much time as it will take you to read this post). But the team now boasts a new starting netminder — actually, that part might be complicated — in Tomas Vokoun. The D-corps have also received a veteran boost thanks to the acquisition of Roman Hamrlik. The forwards now feature the Hebrew Hammer Jeff Halpern along with former Moose Jaw Warrior Troy Brouwer and former Owen Sound Plater Joel Ward (I love junior hockey). And for fans before 2009 (those exist?), fan favorite Olie Kolzig is also back as a coach.

But enough about the summer. Now it’s finally time for hockey. Glorious hockey.

“I’m really excited for the season to be back because the off-season sucks,” said Caps fan Amanda Hill.

“I have to admit, at the beginning of last year I was a little blasé,” the Goat said. “It was really kind of the status quo team and there was no real reason to think anything had changed. … Starting on July 1st I just felt, ‘This is it; this is a regular season to be excited about because we could actually see a different team out there.’”

“There’re a lot of guys on the Caps that have something to prove and I’m looking forward to seeing them prove it,” he continued.

Washington plans do just that. And though they may be professionals, the team can still get a case of the butterflies.

Said Head Coach Bruce Boudreau: “The crowd’s into it, there are a lot of new guys. Nerves were there. It’s like the first day on the job and going into the office — you’re nervous. Whether you’re a 20-year veteran on the job or just brand new.”

On July 30th, we thought that Varly was headed to the KHL. But the rumor was dubiously sourced, two teams (SKA and Lokomotiv Yaroslavl) disputed Varlamov’s negotiation rights, and the Caps weren’t talking. On July 1st, the first day of free agency, the Capitals dealt Varly to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for some very nice draft picks. As a condition of that deal, if the Avs don’t to make the playoffs those picks get even better.

That would be Joel Ward, who got a 4-year, $12M contract with the team on free agency day. Ward distinguished himself with a superb playoff performance with Nashville, scoring seven goals in 12 games, and he has a reputation as a defensively minded forward and hardy penalty killer. With the Caps’ apparent evaporation of secondary scoring, Ward will be expected to produce this year.

Hell yeah! Caps veteran Jeff Halpern is back with a one-year contract. Halpy was a Cap from 1999 until 2004 and says he “jumped at the opportunity to come back” to the team that launched his NHL career. Between this and the return of Olie, you can expect to see noticeably more blue/black/bronze jerseys around Chinatown this year.

How about those injuries last year?

Dennis Wideman missed the playoffs after a nasty hit to the leg from Carolina’s Tuomo Ruutu (checked: still not a Star Wars character) at the end of the regular season. We heard it was “just a bruise”, but it turned out to be something gross called “compartment syndrome.” Wideman is looking good in the preseason and should be playing on opening night.

Tom Poti missed most of last year with a nagging groin injury. We usually make jokes about groin injuries here, but Poti’s ailment is seriously endangering his hockey career. Tom failed his physical and will likely be on injured reserve status this year.

Any cool drama I need to know about?

Alright, get this: Matt Bradley gives an interview to a Florida radio station and says that Alex Semin doesn’t care. Then David Steckel kinda-sorta says the same thing. And then everyone else jumps to Semin’s defense. And then the dude himself gives two English-language video interviews, which kinda makes you think someone in the organization was really worried about this meme. Speaking of memes, we made some bar graphs about the whole kerfuffle.

In other news, Alex Ovechkin slouched in an interview with Mike Vogel, leading everyone to think he got fat. A subsequent onslaught of notables (including Ted Leonsis himself) defended Alex’s fitness. This in no way justified and perpetuated a ludicrous story that should have been ignored by all sensible people except us and Dan Steinberg.

Just recently the Caps tried out white netting instead of black netting behind the ice, creating a kind of snowblindness for fans who sit at funny angles. People complained, and the white netting lasted exactly one game. Don’t laugh; we actually have to read and write about this stuff.

And any blatant gimmickry I should be aware of?

For 16 road games this year, the Caps will be wearing their third jersey, which is basically the Winter Classic uni. Most of those games will be in February and March, when the Caps will be on the road a lot.

Oh not bad; thanks for asking. Neil has been contributing to ESPN Insider in addition to WaPo’s Capitals Insider. Ian has two ferrets. I’ve got a new bulldog named Georgia who sits on my coffee table when I’m not home. Chris got his pubes. Fedor and Igor are still Russian, and Rachel is working on her artist chops.

We’ve got bigger news, but let’s save that for later in the week.

What’s going on in the rest of the NHL?

The Atlanta Thrashers are history. The franchise has become the Winnipeg Jets, restoring the team that left for Phoenix in ’96. Manitoba native and newly minted Jet Eric Fehr is particularly happy about this news. The sucky part is that the ‘Peg is still technically in the NHL’s Southeast division, so there’s gonna be a lot of travelling for SE teams this year. The NHL will realign next season.

Sidney Crosby is still recovering from the concussion he suffered at the beginning of 2011. There is no timetable for his return.

Perhaps Washington’s most reviled ex-player, Jaromir Jagr, has returned to the NHL. He will play for the Philadelphia Flyers.

Speaking of Philly, the Winter Classic of 2012 will pit them against the Rangers.

Sean Avery is still a douchebag, but now with a heart of gold. Matt Cooke is still a thug, but wants to reform. The Sedins are still creepy, and that’ll never change. Martin St. Louis is still lilliputian, and he probably wears lifts in his shoes.

What are the expectations for the Caps this year?

Oh man. Well they struggled a bit in the preseason, but let’s pretend that doesn’t matter.

The Pipeline Show: You had a pretty impressive 14 games in the NHL this year. How gratifying was it? How comfortable were you to play that well?

Braden Holtby: Yeah, it was obviously a great experience all year. It was a lot more than I was expecting coming into the year. The 14 games were spread out through the whole season so it there was actually a lot of experience in there. A couple ups and downs right at the start. I think I got a little overwhelmed with the presence of being in the NHL. I got a bit more comfortable in the end and got a few more wins.

The Pipeline Show: The Caps traded Varly to Colorado. I’m sure you were doing fist-pumps after that. Then a few days later, they sign Tomas Vokoun. What does that mean for you? What kind of emotional roller coaster did you go through?

Braden Holtby: Yeah, it was a tough week, obviously, just because it kind of came out of nowhere in the middle of the summer. It was a pretty big high and a pretty big low. At the same time, it’s basically the same setup as last year. I still have a lot to win in Hershey. I wasn’t really proud of the way I finished out the season down in the AHL. That’s one thing that I really want to work on. Obviously, the sophomore season is going to be the toughest one. Whenever I get called up again, it’s going to be even more valuable experience to play in the NHL.

The Pipeline Show: What has the Vokoun signing taught you about patience?

Braden Holtby: Obviously, I want to play a lot, so I guess that’s one positive coming out of it is that I probably won’t be a back-up to start — I’ll be able to play a lot of games. At the same time, in Saskatoon, I played a lot and I learned to be able to play a lot of games and be more in shape. At the same time, when you’re a back-up or not playing as many games, you have to work twice as hard in the gym to keep that up and it’s not quite as easy. Being patient is tough, but it definitely makes you mentally stronger in the end.

The Pipeline Show: Is it a massive jump from the AHL to the NHL?

Braden Holtby: Really there’s some parts that are easier and some parts that are harder. I think [in the NHL] it’s a lot easier because your defensemen are in position. They always do the exact thing that you expect them to do. It makes it easier to read the play and whatnot. At the same time, the skill-level of the NHL is just so amazing, you kind of get caught up watching guys sometimes. That and obviously it’s the NHL. The aura of the NHL that goes around it, the pressure to perform, the big crowds, everyone seeing you or whatever, telling you what great job you did or not so good job you did on the streets. Just little differences like that. When it comes to playing on the ice, it’s really not a whole lot different. The speed is fairly similar, just the precision and skill level makes it harder.

The Pipeline Show: Bruce Boudreau installed a new defensive system this past year. How different was it from the run ‘n’ gun one that you guys played under before?

Braden Holtby: You know, I didn’t get to experience the other team so much. When I was up the year before, it really didn’t seem like that much of a change. When you bring in guys like Carlson and Alzner and they play 22 or 23 minutes a game, no matter what system you play in, you’re not going to have very many tough scoring chances to stop when you have guys like that on the ice. Bringing in a couple of key guys like Wideman and Hannan, they played a big role. I don’t think it was too much of a change in the system, I think it was just the defense just got that much better. People started to figure out the offense a bit. I know Nicklas Backstrom had a few injuries that guys didn’t really know about. I think everyone has that throughout the year. But that definitely made him not perform as well as he usually does. But, you got to give those guys a break. To perform at that level, it’s really hard to do that ever year. I wouldn’t be surprised if they came out and tore it up this upcoming season.

The Pipeline Show: Karl Alzner — is this guy still scratching the surface of his potential?

Braden Holtby: Yeah, you know he’s so amazingly good at the little things of hockey. You can watch a whole game and not even notice him. Then watch the game on film, watch him the whole time, and realize he never made one mistake the whole game. Those are the guys goalies absolutely love to have on their team. They probably don’t get the praise that they should. His hockey sense, his hand-eye coordination with his stick is absolutely amazing to watch. It’s definitely a big positive to be able to play behind him.

The Pipeline Show: You spent a lot of time in Hershey. What can you tell us about what Sheldon Souray was like down there?

Braden Holtby: Sheldon, from the moment he got to Hershey, he had about probably 10 times better of an attitude than anyone was expecting. You can’t really blame a guy if he comes down there and doesn’t really work as hard or whatnot because he’s been in the NHL for so long. He battled every game. He was fighting for us — big hits, sticking up for guys. He was just good guy to have on the team. He really taught a lot of us how to be professional and to perform in the professional ranks over a series of an 80 or 82 game season whether it’s in the NHL or the AHL. He was a positive influence in the dressing room. Always joking around having fun with guys. We’re all glad to see he got another chance in the NHL.

After absorbing an eight-game losing streak in December and seeing their offense repeatedly not click, Bruce Boudreau and George McPhee decided that the time had finally come to change the team’s run ‘n’ gun style to a more defense-first system. During the year, the Capitals traded top six forward Tomas Fleischmann to Colorado for veteran Scott Hannan and also picked up Dennis Wideman at the trade deadline. The results were stunning.

After finishing 16th in the league in 2009-10 with a goals allowed per game of 2.67, the Capitals finished in the top five in 2010-11, with 2.33. Washington also had the third best penalty kill in the league last year, improving almost six percent from the year before. However, the Caps still flamed out early on in the playoffs, being swept by the Tampa Bay Lightning.

“I felt we needed to add a defenseman last year in the summer and we didn’t do it,” McPhee said Friday. “We made the trade the during the year, but it’s a hard process to go through.”

So in response, McPhee signed 37-year old defenseman Roman Hamrlik, who played the last four seasons in Montreal, to a two year, seven million dollar deal.

“It’s an honor to play for the Washington Capitals,” Hamrlik told reporters Saturday. “I think I can bring some experience and I can still move the puck, and I can play probably play around 20, 22 good, quality minutes I can bring to the team, for sure.”

Hamrlik, a veteran of 19 NHL seasons, may be paired with star defenseman Mike Green and possibly fill the role as mentor to the 25 year-old, who he referred to as “one of the best defenseman in the league.”

“When we played against you guys, he’s got lots of speed, great hands, he can shoot the puck,” Hamrlik said. “Hopefully he can learn something from me. For me playing with those young guys, superstars like that, it’s something I can learn from them too.”

And while the Caps have added a seasoned D-man in Hamrlik, the signing likely spells the end of another in Hannan, who’s terms were probably too high for Washington in the salary cap world. It also probably means the Capitals believe Tom Poti will not be able to come back from the chronic groin injury that has derailed his career.

But for Hamrlik, signing with Washington is one last chance to win the ultimate prize.

“That’s my goal. I think I’m getting to that age when I’m 37 and I was choosing Capitals for hopefully go deep in the playoffs and win the Cup one day and you know, I’ve been in the league for a long time and I have experience and I think I can still play,” he said. “It’s been a great run. I think age doesn’t really matter if you can keep fighting with the young guys.”

“There was never a serious consideration to go anywhere else,” Laich said. “The main core of this team is very young and if you can keep that together, you’re looking at a chance to win a championship for potently the next 10 years, rather than just a window of two to three years. That was a great motivator to get me re-signed.”

Laich brings more than just goals though. The versatile, two-way forward is a heart and soul player with skill to boot, on a team the often sorely lacks skaters willing to grind it out, explaining why the Capitals most likely overpaid for fear of losing that. What this means, however, is that Washington now has just under nine million in cap space remaining for 2011-12, according to CapGeek.com, with many players left unsigned (RFAs Troy Brouwer, Karl Alzner and Semyon Varlamov; UFAs Jason Arnott, Marco Sturm, Matt Bradley, Boyd Gordon and Scott Hannan).

Maybe Uncle Ted wasn’t kidding after all when he said “don’t be surprised if you see some trades” on his blog. Unlike his owner, however, Capitals General Manager George McPhee wasn’t about to tip his hand and delivered terse remarks when it came to the cap. “We’re happy with where we are,” he said.

But no matter who in the dressing room come October, Laich is as focused as ever on his ultimate goal: hoisting the Stanley Cup.

“The regular season success has been great but now it’s time to take it to the next level which is the postseason and you have to learn that,” said the Wawota, Saskatchewan native. “It takes time for young players, young teams to learn how to win at that time and that’s obviously the next level for us. You just don’t make rash decisions based on one bad week of hockey.”

“I think this year, there’s got to be a lot more accountability amongst our players and to the coaches,” Laich continued. “You come back with one goal and that’s to win the Stanley Cup, and that’s what you work for all year long.”

The Washington Capitals invited the Tampa Bay Lightning for a night of pucks and fun in Chinatown. Starting off the conference semi-finals, the well rested Caps were expected to bulldoze Tampa Bay’s exhausted trap defense and open up some cracks in the Roloson wall. Did not happen.

On the board first was Sean Bergenheim, rewarded for crowding Michal Neuvirth’s crease. Marco Sturm returned fire by forcing a turnover that Alex Semin mightily wristed past Dwayne Roloson’s defenses. Jason Chimera fought below the goal line to set up Eric Fehr for the go-ahead, but that’s when the wheels came off. After a soft turnover, Steve Downie had a little help in his tying goal thanks to Scott Hannan’s stick. On a late second period powerplay, Steven Stamkos, given way too much space in the paint by John Erskine, had enough time to force one past Neuvy. And with the net cleared out, Dominic Moore sacrificed his body to settle the matter. Bolts beat Caps 4-2. Dammit.

The Capitals were the better team for the majority of the first 40 minutes, but the Lightning did a better job exploiting the Caps’ mistakes. What should have been a swelling third period comeback ended up being a stunning collapse of Washington’s systems. Crestfall.

Despite the loss, Washington had more scoring chances, leading Tampa 18-16.

But the powerplay. Sheesh. The powerplay. The Caps had 4 PP scoring chances in the first period and none after. The man advantage had trouble entering the zone and generating a single shot at the end there. Yikes.

The oft-injured Simon Gagne accrued yet another blow to the head. Following a clean hit from Scott Hannan (who was a bundle of trouble on skates tonight), Gagne lost his balance and bounced his noggin on the Verizon Center sheet. Gagne declined the stretcher, but with his history of concussions we have reason to be worried about him.

John Carlson got hurt at the tail end of the second period. Don’t know why. Too cranky to look it up. Tell you what: you look it up and tell me. He skated one shift in the third.

I’m sorry. I am butthurt over this game, and I’m taking it out on you. Not cool, I know. Someone get me a glass of milk.

Steve Downie, dammit. One goal, one assist tonight. Dude has 8 points in his last 4 games, the best stretch of his career. He did have an elbowing penalty, but that’s still below-average douchebaggery for Steve.

Dammit. Downie. (Photo credit: Greg Fiume)

Tampa blocked 3 shots in 1st, 6 in the 2nd, and 12 in the 3rd. If we went to overtime, they probably would have blocked 24 shots. Neil would like to point out that they blocked only 2 in the scoring-chance erogenous zone, which evidences the lack of the our team’s net crashiness tonight.

Nick Backstrom continues his ice-cold streak with three scoring chances and nothing to show for it. And man was he close on a couple tonight. When he breaks through, it’ll be a sight to behold. Alex will be pissed if someone else gets an Ovechtrick first.

Jeremy Roenick suit of the night

Alright, this one didn’t turn out the way we wanted. The Capitals’ yearlong rest between games yielded exactly squat (note: read this in John C. McGinley voice for intended effect). Grumpypants have been affixed to the team’s hips, and they shall not be removed until Sunday evening at the earliest.

This was a clear tactical victory for Guy Boucher’s flummoxing system. Bruce Boudreau, nervous– rubbing his face, and getting all splotchy in the third, was clear proof of that.

But we’re not beyond hope.

The second period Capitals were breaking through the Tampa wall and pressuring Roloson with tenacity. They were creative, physical, and attuned to one another as if they’d just finished a work retreat packed with trustfalls. If the Caps can summon that vibe on Sunday and the three games after it, this will be the exciting and winnalicious series we all deserve.

Don’t lose hope. These kinds of games have to happen in the playoffs. We’ll see you Sunday.

In a matchup between the Eastern Conference’s best and worst teams, Bruce Boudreau opted to scratch three of his regulars — Jason Arnott, Scott Hannan and Alexander Semin — in the Capitals final home game of the regular season. After seeing his team play a tough 65 minutes in Toronto, Boudreau saw no compelling reason to field his best roster, especially considering the Capitals had already clinched their fourth straight Southeast division title.

Despite there being some signs pointing to Mike Green returning to the line-up tonight, Boudreau opted to sit the two-time Norris Trophy finalist as well. Boudreau told the Washington Post’s Greg Schimmel after today’s morning skate that, “No [Green won’t play tonight], but you know what, he’s ready to play and, I mean, he’s been symptom-free for three weeks plus. It’s just we’re trying to be as cautious as we can with things, just as other people are with guys that they have as concussions and could probably play, but they want to make 100 percent sure. We feel he’ll be good to go on Saturday.”

The Capitals “B” team, however, didn’t miss a beat. Before the game was a minute old, Marcus Johansson — he of the ever-burgeoning confidence — inside outted Mike Weaver with an extra-crispy move. Helpless and out of position, Weaver took a tripping penalty, sending the Capitals power play immediately onto the ice. Mike Knuble, the beneficiary of a Brooks Laich power move to the net, scored 23 seconds into the man-advantage. Jason Chimera, brilliantly set-up by Nicklas Backstrom, then scored via a tap-in on Washington’s second powerplay of the night to close the opening stanza.

The Capitals would never look back. Sean Collins would score his second career NHL goal on a rarely-seen four-on-two odd man break during the second period, Matt Hendricks would pot a goal in front of the net after some hard forechecking in the corners and Alex Ovechkin would add an empty-net goal, his 32nd of the season. Caps maul Panthers, 5-2.

The sign that willed Knuble's first period tally. (Photo credit: Cheryl Nichols)

If there’s one person on earth who definitely doesn’t have eyes in the back of his head, it’d be Scott Clemmensen. Despite being a veteran of over 120 NHL games and previously apprenticing under future Hall of Fame goaltender Martin Brodeur, Clemmensen has somehow still not mastered how to defend plays behind the net, which I thought was a pretty basic thing. On Chimera’s power play goal, the thirty three-year old back-up goaltender guessed wrong on what Nick Backstrom was doing, and on Hendricks tally, he did not hold the post strong and watched another gimme go into the net. Sure, Florida’s defense has more holes in it than a gourmet slice of Swiss cheese, but Clemmensen did little to help give the rebuilding club a chance to win tonight.

That reminds me. Time seriously flies. How has it been over a decade since I watched Panthers fans happily throw plastic rats onto the ice in the 1996 Stanley Cup Finals? For those of you who have no idea what I’m talking about, you can read up on the hilarious story here on Wikipedia. The Panthers organization has pretty much been stuck in disarray since then and I really feel sorry for the team’s hardcore fans. As a person who has rooted for the Orioles all my life and have suffered through their 13 consecutive losing seasons, it takes an emotional toll. I honestly hope the Panthers get it together. Though when the team gives away one of their best assets like Dennis Wideman — who still has another year left on his contract — for a third round pick and Jake Hauswirth, it’s really hard to see how their current regime could return the organization to greatness.

The best news of the night: no one got injured. ::High Five::

Washington has won four straight games and can drop out of first place only if it loses in regulation to Florida on Saturday and if the Philadelphia Flyers win their last two games. Sweet.

Per the Caps Media, Mike Knuble now has 13 points (9 goals, 4 assists) in his last 13 games. Brooks Laich has six points (all assists) during his current five-game point streak.

In the first period, Scott Clemmensen faced six shots and let in two. On the opposite end of the ice, Semyon Varlamov stopped all 18 shots Florida threw at him. You can’t say this often, but tonight’s tilt was won in the first period. Varly, who made 31 saves, definitely deserved to be the game’s first star of the night.

I personally was very happy to see Sean Collins net the game’s third goal. After talking to him in Hershey last year, the guy has really craved playing in the NHL since his 15-game stint in 2008-09. There was probably no one more enthused about tonight’s victory than him. Major props are also extended to Laich for collecting the puck that he scored the goal with and giving it to the training staff for Collins to keep forever.

All this crashing of the net is getting me excited. It seems like every goal the Capitals have scored lately has been preceded by a power move towards the opponent’s crease.

Joe B. Suit of the Night (Who's that awesome guy in the middle?)

For the second straight year, every Capitals home game was sold out, a streak now extending to 101 consecutive games. This IS a hockeytown.

A few other nuggets: Marcus Johansson was two for nine in the faceoff dot. Matt Bradley had five hits in 12 minutes of ice time. Brooks Laich won nine of 12 draws. The Capitals are 39-0-3 when scoring three or more goals.

We’ll see you Saturday for the Capitals final tilt of the year in Sunrise. Then time for the PLAYOFFS!!!!!!!!!!@!@!@!!!!!

“This weekend was an incredible event!,” William’s father Devin Shannon said in an email. “William’s wish was to practice with the Capitals and he did! I can’t tell you how much everyone has done for us and what this weekend has meant for us.”

Day two was just as amazing as day one! Allyson Butler from Make-A-Wish met us in the hotel lobby and took us out to wait for our “ride” to the game! Within minutes a very long black stretch limo appeared before us! Bill, our driver, was very nice. William and Emily quickly climbed in and all we heard for a few minutes was: “Cool!” “This is so sweet!” Then we had chatty little ones for the short ride over to the Verizon Center! It is amazing how just the little things make such a huge impression! How neat it was for the kids to get out of the limo right in front of the Verizon Center with so many fans around wondering who the V.I.P. was!

Allyson led us to our seats which were in Ovi’s Crazy Eights section! Before game time, we got to go down to the ice level to watch warmups. However, it wasn’t just any warmup because we got to watch it from the penalty box! Both kids spent a few minutes with Wes Johnson, the public address announcer!

While we were hanging in the penalty box, one fan came knocking on the glass and congratulated William on the goals he scored on Semyon Varlamov! How thrilling it was to be with a celebrity! Then we headed up to our seats for the game! As soon as I returned from our first period run for food, we were whisked away to the press box. Kurt from Capitals PR took us around and showed us the press box with Joe Beninati and Craig Laughlin. They greeted us all with smiles on their faces! William responded with a “I saw you on TV!”. They gave William a pair of headphones so that he could listen in to what they were hearing.

As soon as the first period ended, Craig instructed William in how they use the telestrator to demonstrate plays by drawing circles, arrows, etc. He was very chatty with William about his experiences with the Caps. Joe jumped in a bit to compliment William on his hockey skills from the day before. Craig didn’t leave Emily out and gave her some of the same attention and instruction that he gave William! Top-notch guys!! We got an added bonus when we were all invited into the replay booth. The head replay guy, John Robinson, shared how he had just made a donation to friends of his participating in a Make-A-Wish Foundation fundraiser bike ride! He asked permission to include William on his prayer list, which so far contains the names of survivors! He was so sweet and so touched by my little guy!

We headed back to our seats to watch a little more of the game, but that was short-lived! William had to make his debut on the big screen riding on the Olympia (in our world, the Zamboni)! Another dream come true for him! He did not hesitate when picked up to climb in! He got his seat belt on and was ready to go! The beaming smile was just amazing! The video of William on the Zamboni went up on the jumbotron to a huge applause from the fans! He smiled and waved in reply! He looked so little up there, but so happy and confident! He chatted a little with Jamey the driver, but was mostly just checking everything out! Emily, Sandy and I got to watch him from behind the doors where the Zamboni comes on and off the ice.

We made it back to our seats for just a few more minutes. As it was Fan Appreciation Day, every fan received a Nicklas Backstrom bobblehead (and one fan randomly gave his to William as he was passing us before the game even began)! There was a contest conducted for fans to win a game-worn autographed jersey. So they came to get Sandy and William and head back down to the ice level to prepare to line up to receive his jersey. Sandy and William got to watch most of the third period on T.V. from near the Coaches Club lounge downstairs. Hanging out there they saw several goals, but had to go line up with the Caps being down by a goal. They went off to the hallway to await being brought out onto the ice. They received news of the goal to tie it up and then the winning goal by Alex Ovechkin!

There was another little boy, Luke, in the line who was getting Slapshot’s jersey. Luke was initially taken aback about which jersey William was getting (it was a surprise for all the winners except William), as it was Luke’s favorite player, but he handled it like a champ and was excited for William and for himself. Luke and William are only a few months apart in age and they hit it off big! How great it was for William to meet another kid who shares the same passion for hockey that he does! They chatted about players, goals and were just goofy together! Two peas in a pod they were! The line of winners filed out onto the carpet over the ice. Each winner had to pull a paper out of their envelope which had a player’s number on it. That player then came over to meet the winner of the jersey and to sign the jersey. William and Luke were the last two. They were so patient and so composed waiting their turn! All players had given away their jerseys except one: Alexander Semin! Semin skated over and pulled off his jersey to give to William. He signed it and then as he handed it over and went to pose for a photo-op, he hoisted William up to his shoulder to a huge applause from the fans and from the players! Just amazing! Both William and Semin were beaming!

On their final trip back to our seats, Sandy said William was met with applause and gestures of awe as they walked along the corridor: “There’s that kid!” “Way to go William!” “I saw you on T.V.!” “You skated great!” I think he might have been a bit overwhelmed, but certainly so happy! I can’t wait to see the recording of the game. I heard that Joe and Craig mentioned William’s practice Friday and that we had visited them in the booth. I am sure I am leaving out so much! It was just an amazing night! I cannot get over the generosity of this organization and the special place they held in their hearts for our little boy! The stories being written and the tweets posted tell me how touched the players, bloggers and media were with his story. I don’t think that his story medically is much different from many other children, but I know that his passion and love for hockey and the Capitals makes him stand out! When we were talking earlier that day about the game, the kids predicted that the Caps would score three or four goals (they scored five). William said Ovi was going to get at least three points! And he was right on! Two assists and the final overtime goal!!!

Bill met us with our beautiful stretch limo and took us back to the hotel! William loved his limo ride and was excited that his feet could touch the ground! When asked his favorite part of tonight, he responded that it was meeting Semin! All in all, I don’t think Make-A-Wish and the Capitals could have made the trip any better! When Sandy and William were walking back to our seats, William turned and told Sandy, “Mom, my wish really did come true!”

There are so many people that played such a huge part in William’s wish! Bruce Boudreau, George McPhee, Bob Woods, Scott Hannan, Matt Bradley, Mike Green, D.J. King, Semyon Varlamov, Jason Chimera, Alexander Semin, Joe Beninati, Craig Laughlin, John Robinson, Ted Leonsis, Liz and Nadia (our Capitals escorts), Allyson and Jessica from Make-A-Wish Mid-Atlantic, Pam Haymond from the Make-A-Wish Northern WV chapter, Laura our Red Rocker, Wes the PA announcer, Bill the limo driver, Jamey the Zamboni driver, Jorge from Front Page Arlington, Chris Gordon, the crews from WUSA 9 and CSN, all of the bloggers, the fans who cheered William on and so many more! It truly was a magical night!

(All photos courtesy Shannon family — Click to enlarge)

Alex Ovechkin signs his stick for William on Friday.

William and his sister Emily take in practice.

William poses for a photo with Caps Head Coach Bruce Boudreau.

William’s very own stall in the Capitals locker room.

“Authorized Personnel Only”

William meets Scott Hannan.

William talks to Joe B outside the locker room.

Capitals General Manager Geogre McPhee with William.

William in Capitals locker room with Jay Beagle (left) and Matt Bradley (center).

Risking dropping their second straight game to a sub-par team, the Washington Capitals were rescued by none other than Jason Chimera, a healthy scratch just a game ago.

For Chimera it was sweet redemption and “especially nice” that it came against his former team, the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Despite the win, victory wasn’t easy for Washington with sloppy play plaguing the Caps throughout the night.

“We did not do a very good job tonight,” veteran center Jason Arnott said. “There were a lot of bouncing pucks, a lot of nonchalant plays that we don’t normally make … We have to clean up our own zone, it starts tomorrow with the video, and try to correct it and come up with a better effort to back our goaltender up.”

Head Coach Bruce Boudreau seemed to agree Arnott’s view that the Capitals must play better in front of young netminder Michal Neuvirth.

“The goals that went in he wasn’t going to stop,” Boudreau said. “When the game is on the line he is there. Doesn’t matter if you have five by him or one by him. He’s really good when the game is on the line, and he had to make some real good saves at the end to preserve it. To me, that is the sign of a real winner.”

The Capitals opened the scoring just 1:39 into the match when John Carlson tipped home the rebound off Chimera’s knuckling shot, which deflected off the catching glove of Jackets goalie Steve Mason. The puck ricocheted off numerous players, including Brooks Laich before Carlson got the lucky bounce. With three minutes remaining in the frame, John Erskine and Jared Boll dropped the gloves. Neither combatant landed many punches, but Boll appeared to get the better of the Lumberjack before the two went down. The Caps dominated in the first period, outshooting the Columbus, 16-4.

Midway through the second stanza, the crazy started happenin’. After a scramble in front of the net, Antoine Vermette popped one past Neuvirth. Just over a minute and a half later, however, Mike Knuble put Washington back on top when he Knuble’d the biscuit into the back of the net after a Nicklas Backstrom shot got past Mason. However, (are you noticing a pattern here) just 42 seconds later Columbus would knot it up once again when Fedor Tyutin fooled Neuvirth with a wrister. Not to be outdone for the second time in as many minutes, Arnott made the score three-two Washington after a great feed for Marco Sturm. Four goals. Two minutes and 17 seconds. Got all that? Didn’t think so.

The Capitals would hold that lead for 14 minutes and 23 seconds into the third, until Scottie Upshall held off both Karl Alzner and Sturm as they tried to remove him from the puck before rifling a wrist shot past Neuvirth. Tie game.

In overtime, well, you know the drill. Chimera chips it in and there’s your ballgame. Caps down Jackets, 4-3 (OT)

With tonight’s two point performance, the Capitals went over the century mark for the third straight year. With four games left to play, the Capitals have 101 standings points, sitting only one point behind conference-leading Philadelphia. A month ago, if you told us that the Capitals would be challenging for first place with their top defensemen, franchise center, two-time league MVP and both of their star goaltenders struggling with injuries we would have called you crazy. But Washington has weathered the storm. In fact, the Caps have actually found their groove during that time, going 12-2-1 in the month of March, notching an impressive 25 out of a possible 30 standings points. That’s called, you guessed it, staying angry.

How long will Wideman be out? Who knows? But CSN’s Jill Sorenson spoke with Matt Hendricks following the game, with Hendricks saying he suffered a hematoma during the NHL lockout and missed a total of two months.

The entire Capitals defense was forced to shoulder an even heavier load than normal tonight with only five healthy defensemen available for the final two periods of the game after John Erskine suffered an injury. There were three particularly noteworthy performances. First, John Carlson. In Captain America’s 100th career game, he scored the game’s first goal, notched an assist and had four shots in 25:48 of ice time. Scott Hannan was also exceptional, logging a game-high 28:19, blocking six shots and dishing out three hits. Finally, Jeff Schultz stepped his game up, blocking three shots and being a plus-two in 26:35 of ice time.

Despite playing just under six minutes, Erskine still managed to register a team-high four hits with his physical play, though one has to think that could be a possible cause for his ailment. Or maybe he suffered it during this completely unnecessary fight with Jared Boll. Most likely, we’ll never know.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Tyler Sloan was a minus-one in only 12:55 of time on ice. So essentially there were only four NHL quality defensemen out there.

Per NHL.com’s play-by-play, the four goals were from 14, 12, 11 and 14 feet (from the end boards). In other words, net crashed.less than a minute ago via webJapersRinkJapersRink

Joe B. Suit of the Night

Despite the win, the Jackets rallied three times while down by a goal against the Caps. To succeed in the playoffs you need a killer instinct, something Washington lacked against Columbus.

Four games. That’s all that remains until the Stanley Cup Playoffs. We’ll see you back here Saturday night, though it is Nicklas Backstrom bobblehead day, so we won’t blame you for heading to the game.

After an extended 10 day break to rest an undisclosed injury, the Capitals welcomed their kapitan back to the lineup Tuesday night against the Carolina Hurricanes. During the three game stretch in which Ovechkin sat out, the Caps went 2-1-0, their most dominant win coming Saturday night in Montreal when Braden Holtby shutout the Canadiens.

Alex Semin’s Canadian Ice Dad, Jason Arnott, also returned from injury, forcing Jason Chimera to the press box. Pre-game, head coach Bruce Boudreau told CSN that while it was great that two of his top six forwards were returning, he also had a fear that there would be a letdown. “You know, the guys have been working so hard while [Ovechkin and Arnott] have been out. I’m scared they’ll look at them returning and go ‘they should carry the load now.'”

In the first period, however, Boudreau would have nothing to worry about. Led by a determined Russian Machine, the Capitals as a team hit everything that moved and rifled 16 shots at Cam Ward, feeding off the energy of a Verizon Center crowd they hadn’t played in front of for sixteen long days. The Caps would not see their hard work be rewarded, and the game would remain scoreless until early on in the second period. After Nick Backstrom took a tripping penalty at 1:06, Joe Corvo brilliantly found Jussi Jokinen wide-open in the slot for a one-timer. Jokinen converted and the Hurricanes would take a 1-0 lead.

The Capitals would answer back twelve minutes later. After Carolina turned it over in their defensive end, Brooks Laich fed Alex Semin the puck along the boards. Sasha Minor then curled around four Hurricanes, went in alone on goal and accurately placed a wrist-shot over Cam Ward’s right shoulder. The goal was certainly of the highlight-reel variety, even though you wouldn’t of noticed by Semin’s celebration.

Marcus Johansson then capped the second period’s scoring off by notching his 13th goal of the year three minutes later.

The Capitals then came out a bit complacent for the third period. 18-year old sensation Jeff Skinner pierced Semyon Varlamov for a softy — his 27th goal of the year — 1:48 into the period, and the Capitals lost any momentum they had built previously. Both teams traded chances for the rest of the third period and overtime, but a victor could not be decided. In the shootout, the Hurricanes were allowed to shoot first. Skinner and Tuomo Ruutu would score, while both Ovechkin and Nick Backstrom missed on their opportunities. Canes beat Caps, 3-2 (SO).

Let’s be honest with ourselves, Carolina just wanted this game more in the end.

The circus might have left town, but it seems as if they left one of their carnival acts behind. I’m just kidding, Tuomo Ruutu. Not really. Despite Cam Ward and Jeff Skinner being named the first and second stars of the night, in this writer’s opinion, there was no more effective and valuable player on the ice for Carolina than the young Finn. Ruutu had eight hits, including one which knocked Dennis Wideman out of the game, and he also potted the shootout game-winner. Let’s not forget too that he had a secondary assist on the game’s first goal and got under the skin of Alex Ovechkin to the point where the Great Eight was targeting him in the third.

Yeah, about that Wideman hit. It was most certainly a dangerous play, as Ruutu unnecessarily accelerated towards Wideman in open ice, looking for the knockout. Ruutu clipped the Capitals defenseman awkwardly, injuring what looked to be his right leg, and connected on a glancing blow to his head. Regardless on if the hit was clean or not, the play was irritating because of how completely unnecessary it was. But I guess that’s the type of stuff Ruutu does.

Bruce Boudreau told the media after the game that Dennis Wideman was “okay” and he’s listed as “day-to-day.” I’d be shocked, however, if we see Wideman Thursday. Really, D-Wide. No rush!

Alex Semin scored his 28th 27th goal of the year, had the primary assist on Marcus Johansson’s tally and then was benched for all five minutes of overtime. That noise you’re hearing right now is me applauding Bruce Boudreau. With 3:19 left in the third period, Semin senselessly took a hooking penalty in the neutral zone. The Hurricanes would not score on the resulting power play, but that’s besides the point. In the playoffs, you cannot take stupid penalties like that or you will lose games. I think we’ve all been frustrated at Bruce for rarely putting his foot down over the past few years with Semin. But tonight, this discipline could not have come at a better time. Play smart or don’t play at all.

A word for you readers as well. An Alex Semin Hat Trick is when Sasha Minor scores a goal, a goal and a goal. Not a goal, an assist and a penalty. Really, let’s not glorify his laziness. I can assure you, Gordie Howe is not impressed by his stick infractions.

The Capitals out-chanced the Hurricanes 25 to 14 overall, and 23 to nine at even strength. A dominant offensive performance if not for Cam Ward. One troubling stat however was that Carolina had just as many chances short-handed as the Caps did on the power-play: two. Chad LaRose was even awarded a penalty shot — which Semyon Varlamov poke-checked away — in the second period.

Mike Knuble looked like a junk yard dog tonight. He was everywhere! Knuble had six shots, blocked a shot on a Hurricane’s four on three power play and looked to have the legs of a 22-year old.

Eric Fehr had one scoring chance for, one against and rifled one shot on goal. Fehr was also not effective at the point on the power play. Let’s just say it wasn’t exactly the statement game he needed with Jason Chimera scratched.

Scott Hannan was on the ice for seven scoring chances for and nine against. He also had two giveaways, took a minor penalty and had a minus-one in 26:12 of ice time.

Alex Ovechkin didn’t score, but he had five shots — one of which broke Cam Ward’s stick in overtime — and five hits. Ovi had this to say, as quoted by The Washington Times’ Stephen Whyno:

Joe B. Suit of the Night

“It was pretty hard when you’re coming back after three games sitting out. But every shift, every period I was feeling better and better.” That’s good news. Ovi’s energy burst is back!

The Columbus Blue Jackets come to town on Thursday, a team that’s just playing the rest of the season out. Will the Capitals bring the intensity and win a game that they should win? With five games left, it’s time to start putting this machine into overdrive. We’ll see you then!